CNN to Open South Asia Bureau in New Delhi

NEW DELHI, India (AP) _ Cable New Network plans to open a bureau in New Delhi to cover events in South Asia, the network’s vice president for international news gathering said today.

″We believe this is a very, very important region of the world and it needs to be covered comprehensively,″ CNN’s Eason Jordan told reporters.

The New Delhi bureau will be the Atlanta-based network’s 18th bureau outside North America. It will join CNN bureaus in Beijing, Tokyo, Manila and Seoul in covering the region. A bureau in Bangkok also is scheduled to open this year.

″It is not our intention to become competitors to the local media,″ said Peter Vesey, who is responsible for the network’s editorial content, programming and development. ″We feel there is a need for complementary reporting from this region.″

CNN hopes to get government clearances soon to open the bureau, said Ashis Ray, the New Delhi bureau chief. He said the government did not stipulate any condition for opening the bureau.